Returning To Normal
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Sam is hurt on a hunt after Lucifer Rising. Dean takes care of his brother the only way he knows how.


**Disclaimer**: I don't own Supernatural and never will. No copyright infringement intended.

**Author's Note**: Written for authoressnebula on her birthday. I hope she enjoyed it.

* * *

Sam and Dean are still trying to deal with Lucifer rising when they get a call from another hunter, telling them about a hunt they're needed on.

They rush to Pennsylvania from Bobby's house to deal with the hunt quickly. At least Sam has detoxed and able to hunt.

Unfortunately, Sam is thrown down a flight of stairs by the poltergeist they're hunting and ends up with several injuries.

Dean takes him back to Bobby's after Sam gets out of the hospital. "You need any painkillers?" he asks his little brother.

Sam shakes his head. "I'm okay, Dean. My wrist just hurts a little bit, and so do my bruises. I don't need any painkillers," he answers. Sam's not lying. He's not in too much pain right now, and Sam's glad to be back at Bobby's.

"You sure, Sammy?" Dean's worried about his brother. He remembers screaming when Sam tumbled down the steps like it. It was one of the most horrifying few seconds of his life.

"I'm sure, Dean." Sam is so happy that Dean is staying by his side. He doesn't know if Dean's forgiven him yet (or if he ever will), but at least his brother isn't leaving him. Sam has abandonment issues now, something he never expected to have.

"Good. Why don't you take a nap?" Dean thinks Sam needs to sleep for a long time. He needs it. Sam hasn't been sleeping right for a few weeks.

"Dean, I'm not tired," Sam whines. He just wants to sit on the couch (or lie in bed) and watch TV with his brother and Bobby while he heals. Is that too much to ask?

"I know you're not," he replies. Dean knows Sam, and figures his brother will probably fall asleep in the next fifteen minutes. He always does that when he's hurt really badly and complaining that he's not tired.

Dean settles in next to his brother on the couch and turns on the TV. Bobby's in the kitchen, making dinner for the boys. "Thanks for staying with me," Sam mumbles as his eyes start to close. He really is tired.

Dean smiles at his younger brother. "Shhh, Sammy. Just go to sleep, Kiddo. I'll still be here when you wake up." He knew this was going to happen, and doesn't mind. Sam can just eat dinner later, if he feels up to it. Dean will probably make him eat a little bit anyway, but Sam doesn't need to know that.

'Kay. Talk later," Sam murmurs before he finally falls asleep. Dean turns the volume down low. Bobby hands him a bowl of soup a few minutes later, and Dean tries to eat as quietly as possible.

"Thanks Bobby," Dean whispers. He doesn't want to wake Sam up yet. He still needs his sleep.

"You're welcome," Bobby whispers back. He sits down on the other side of Dean and starts eating his own soup.

"He'll probably sleep for a few hours." Dean knows his little brother's patterns. Sammy will spend yet another night on Bobby's couch, but that's okay. Dean will be with him. He's never leaving Sam's side again. Except to go to the store or a bar or something, but that's completely different.

Bobby gets up and gets one of his books about half an hour later. He sits back down to read it while Sam continues to sleep and Dean flips through the channels.

"Hey, Sammy, why don't you get something to eat?" Dean asks his brother an hour later. He doesn't want Sam to sleep for too long.

"Not hungry." Sam just wants to continue sleeping right next to Dean and not think about how much pain he's in. Why wasn't he hurting this bad earlier?

"You need to eat, Kiddo. Will you please do it for me?" Dean questions. That's always the sure fire way of getting Sam to do something that he asks.

"Okay. Do it for you." Sam needs help getting off the couch, so Dean stands and pulls his brother up. The two Winchesters head into the kitchen. Dean brings Sam a bowl of soup over.

"At least eat half, Sammy." Dean knows that Sam's never going to eat a full bowl of soup, so a half a bowl is okay in this situation. He'll just get Sam to eat more tomorrow.

"I'll try, but I can't promise anything," Sam answers. He's a few bites in when the guilt hits him. The feeling of guilt has been occurring off and on for the past few weeks. It was especially bad during the second detox. At least Dean stayed with him that time.

"I'll be happy if you just eat a little bit." Dean doesn't want to push it. He's seen Sam's sudden change in moods. It's been happening a lot lately, and Dean doesn't care. Sammy's going through a rough time right now. They still have Lucifer to deal with, and it might take awhile to stop him.

"I'm sorry," Sam suddenly says. He puts down his spoon and looks like he's ready to have a break down.

Dean doesn't want to have this conversation right now. He's been dreading it, but knows that it's important. He and Sam need to clear the air. And from the looks Bobby's shooting at him from the living room, he knows it too. "Sammy, we should have this talk when you're feeling better," Dean suggests. This doesn't seem like a good conversation at the moment.

"I want to talk now. I've screwed everything up and I'm sorry. I didn't mean for all this to happen, Dean. You have to believe me. I wanted everything to be okay again and it's not and I suck so badly," Sam rambles, trying desperately not to cry. He can't stop talking and doesn't want to have a breakdown.

"Sammy, calm down. Talk slowly. Explain it to me in words," Dean tells him. He's prepared for Sammy's breakdown. He'll be there for his little brother.

Sam took a deep breath and continued. He struggled not to burst into tears. Sam **needed** to be strong for the time being. "I screwed everything up. I trusted Ruby when I shouldn't. You died because of my inability to kill Jake in Cold Oak. And when you came back, I treated you horribly," he explains, his voice cracking.

"Oh, Sammy. Kiddo, you got manipulated by Ruby just like I got manipulated by the angels. You're not completely at fault here. And what happened after Cold Oak is my fault. I **chose **to make that deal. You got messed up after I died. I'm not saying you didn't do some really bad things, but your head got screwed up. It's not your fault," Dean answers.

He's probably going to have to tell Sam this stuff many times in the next few months, but Dean doesn't care. He'll continue telling Sam that until he starts believing it.

Sam gets off his chair and goes over to Dean's side. Dean knows what he wants and holds his arms out. Sam bolts into his brother's arms and begins to sob. "Please don't leave me, Dean. I couldn't handle it. Please tell me you didn't mean your message from before." He can't stop crying now. He's like a fountain.

"Sammy, I'm never going to leave you. Or kick you out again. I promise you that. I'm staying. You can't get rid of me. And what are you talking about with the message? I told you that I wasn't Dad and I was sorry." Dean doesn't know what Sammy's talking about with the message, but he doesn't think it's good.

"I'm glad you won't kick me out. You said that I was a monster, a vampire, a blood-sucking freak. And that I could never go back," Sam explains, his breath hitching. At the rate he's going, the crying will never stop.

Dean rocks his brother back and forth a little bit to calm Sam down. "I never said that, Kiddo. I would **never **say that to you. You're my little brother. I never want to hurt you on purpose. The angels or Ruby must have changed the message." Dean's definitely going to find out who did change it and they will pay for it. If it's Ruby, then she's already paying for it.

Sam eventually calms down and eventually falls asleep in Dean's arms. Bobby helps Dean put Sam in bed. Dean lies down next to Sam and covers up his little brother.

"Love you, big bro," Sam murmurs as he briefly wakes up and rolls over to the other side. He doesn't want to be uncomfortable.

Dean tearfully smiles at his younger brother. "Love you too, Sammy," he replies. He and Sam don't say those words too often. They only come out when someone really needs to hear it. Sam probably won't remember he said it in the morning, but that's okay. At least Dean knows how he feels. Dean has **always **known that Sam loves him. He is the big brother and does know everything about the kid after all.

"Night, boys!" Bobby calls through the wall. His bedroom is right next to the guest room where Sam and Dean are currently staying.

"Night!" Dean calls back. He falls asleep next to Sam a few minutes later, realizing that tonight brought progress in his and Sam's relationship for the first time since September.

The Winchesters may have problems, but they'll stick together. They will stick by each other and stand strong. Sam and Dean are great when they work together.

That's the way the Winchesters are, and they'll never change. Their relationship can falter, but it will never break.


End file.
